A Guide to Start Court for Victims

A Guide to

Start Court

For Victims

We acknowledge and pay respect to the Traditional Custodians

of the lands upon which we operate across Western Australia.

Introduction

Start Court acknowledges that the effects of crime can be

distressing for those people affected. The purpose of this

publication is to help you in your understanding of the purpose,

aims and processes of this Court. It will also outline how you

may obtain information about your matter and when you may

submit a Victim Impact Statement.

If you are a victim of crime, child witness or family violence victim,

there are a range of support services available from Court

Counselling and Support Services. Please go to

www.justice.wa.gov.au/ccss for more information including the

different services available and contact details.

What is Start Court?

Start Court is a solution-focused court for people experiencing a

mental health issue. There is a focus on providing treatment and

support, in the hope that this will stabilise the offender’s situation

and protect the community while they are on the Program and in

the future.

The Court sits from Tuesday to Friday at the Magistrates Court,

Central Law Courts, 501 Hay Street in Perth. It has its own

dedicated team so that wherever possible, the offender and any

family or carers involved will be dealing with the same staff over

the course of the Program.

Victim Impact Statements

You can provide a Victim Impact Statement to the court, which

will be taken into consideration by the magistrate before

sentencing the offender. Information about preparing a Victim

Impact Statement is available at www.justice.wa.gov.au/vis

Victim Impact Statements can be provided to the court at any

time during the Program.

Compensation for victims of crime

You may be eligible to claim compensation under the Criminal

Injuries Compensation Act 2003. The criminal injuries

compensation scheme is designed to provide compensation if

you suffer bodily harm, mental or nervous shock or pregnancy

resulting from an offence occurring in Western Australia.

Compensation may cover:

• pain and suffering

• loss of enjoyment of life

• loss of income

• treatment expenses

• other incidental expenses, such as travel for treatment or

damage to personal items such as clothing and

spectacles.

For more information visit

www.wa.gov.au/organisation/department-of-justice/commissioner-victims-of-

crime/criminal-injuries-compensation-victims-of-crime

or phone 9425 3250.

How to get information

• You can contact the Start Court Police Prosecutor by

email on;

ProsecutionServicesPerthCentralStartCourt@police.wa.gov.au

You can ask the Start Court Police Prosecutor to keep you

informed about:

• The progress of the matter in court

• Any changes made to the charges, bail conditions

including the reasons for variations

• The sentence or any other order imposed on the offender.

The above information will only be provided if you ask for it, so

make sure you contact the Start Court Police Prosecutor if

you would like to know.

• You can check the progress of the matter in court online

at;

https://ecourts.justice.wa.gov.au/eCourtsPortal/

The Investigating Police Officer can give you the offender’s

full name to help you with your online search.

Frequently asked questions:

Does the offender have to enter a plea to come into Start

Court?

No. An indicated plea of guilty is all that is required at the time of

application. This leaves room for any negotiations between the

defence lawyer and the prosecution. However, if the offender

wishes to plead NOT GUILTY to most of their charges, they will

not be eligible for Start Court, and will be sent to another court for

trial.

Can an offender leave the Start Court program without

completing it?

Yes. Participation in Start Court is voluntary, and offenders can

leave the Program at any stage. The offender simply attends

court and indicates to the magistrate that they no longer wish to

take part. The magistrate will sentence them at an appropriate

time and take into account their participation to that point. They

will not receive an additional punishment for choosing to leave

the Program early.

Start Court Aims:

We aim to reduce offenders’ future contact with the criminal

justice system and improve community safety.

We aim to improve offenders’ mental health and overall

wellbeing.

We aim to increase offenders’ connection with treatment support

services and the community generally by re-engaging or linking

them with the most appropriate services and organisations.

We aim to help offenders achieve a legal outcome in respect of

their charge/s that is proportionate, fair and appropriate to the

circumstances of the offence and their mental health issues.

The members of the team can offer support to the offender in

four (4) key areas;

1. Legal Support (from Legal Aid lawyers, Aboriginal Legal

Service lawyers and Mental Health Law Centre

lawyers/paralegals)

2. Clinical and Corrections Support (from Clinical

Nurses, Psychiatrist, Psychologist, Senior Social Worker,

Senior Community Corrections Officers and Senior Aboriginal

Liaison Officer)

3. Social/Community Support (from Outcare

Coordinators and Peer Support Workers)

4. Alcohol and Other Drug Support (from Diversion

Officer and Senior Community Corrections Officers)

What will happen in Start Court?

The flowchart below shows the stages in Start Court. The durations

of each stage are approximate and will vary depending on

individual needs and the availability of Start Court resources.

Application

(1-2 weeks)

Assessment

(3-4 weeks)

Program

(approx. 6

months)

Exit or

Graduation and

Sentencing

Application

(1-2 weeks)

At any stage prior to

Sentencing a Victim Impact

Statement can be provided to

the Court

Exit and Sentencing

Magistrate is

provided with the

Victim Impact

Statement

Stages of Start Court

Stages of potential victim involvement in

Start Court

Your input at the Program stage:

• During the Program stage you may prepare and provide a

victim impact statement to the prosecutor or the court. This

will then be given to the magistrate when the offender is

sentenced.

• Where appropriate, you may have input into bail conditions.

The prosecutor can keep you informed of any changes to

the offender’s bail conditions if you tell the prosecutor that

you wish to be informed.

• When appropriate, the Victim-Offender Mediation Unit may

contact you to offer you an opportunity to engage in

mediation. It is entirely your choice whether you participate

in this.

• Mediation can give you an opportunity to have your rights

restored in a way that is meaningful to you as well as give

the offender the opportunity to make amends. As part of the

mediation process, the parties may meet face to face if they

wish to and there is also scope for the offender to pay

compensation for losses incurred by the victim.

• A report will be submitted to the court if the parties decide

to participate in mediation, detailing what the outcome of the

mediation process was.

• If you wish to be informed of each offender’s court

appearance, discuss this further with the prosecutor.

Alternatively, you can check court appearances online at

https://ecourts.justice.wa.gov.au/eCourtsPortal/

Exit and Sentencing:

• When the offender successfully completes the Program, the

magistrate will sentence the offender.

• The magistrate will consider their participation in the

Program and it will be taken into account in sentencing.

• It is at this stage that the magistrate will be provided with

your victim impact statement if one has been provided to

the prosecutor or the Court. Information in the victim impact

statement will also be taken into account in sentencing.

• An offender may be removed from the Program early if they

re-offend while on the Program or if they do not comply with

the rules of the Program and/or their bail conditions. The

magistrate will make this decision.

• If an offender is removed from the Program early, their

sentencing will reflect that they did not complete the

Program.

Contacts

Start Court Police Prosecutor…

Email: ProsecutionServicesPerthCentralSta[email protected].gov.au

Court Counselling and Support Services website …

www.justice.wa.gov.au/ccss

Victim Offender Mediation Unit………………………… 9425 3200

Start Court Administration (Magistrates Court) ............ 9425 3423

9425 3422

Email: [email protected]

Lifeline………………………………………………………...13 11 14

Samaritans Crisis Line……………………………..……. …13 52 47

Crisis Care (Family Helpline)…………………………1800 199 008

Women’s Council for Domestic and Family Violence Services…

9420 7264

Victims of Crime website …………www.victimsofcrime.wa.gov.au